Yelp Cash Back Program Review

Traveling on the cheap really means the trio of points, personal finance, and deals is important so this Yelp program is definitely worth signing up for if you haven’t already! Basically in late 2016 a Yelp cash back program was unveiled to the market. The Yelp cash back program allows for up to 10% back as a statement on your credit card.

This Yelp program is similar to many others on the market (which I will discuss a little further). This means you can get dining points through three ways if a restaurants is on both Yelp and the Dining Rewards Network:

Credit card spend such as 3x dining points on Chase Sapphire Reserve

Up to 10% cash back from Yelp

Up to 5x miles through the Dining Rewards Network (details here if unfamiliar)

The reason this program is really appealing for me vs competitors is that by going through Yelp it is very easy see what restaurants have both good reviews, and offer cash back. Many other card linked dining programs have challenging interfaces when you’re out and about to find a restaurant that’s on the platform AND actually is good!

Yelp Cash Back Program Basics

The other challenge with a lot of these programs is they can be complicated to use. I’ll get a little more technical below but it is important to note a couple things:

This is dead simple to use

It runs off the same network as a program called Mogl which is also powered by the same back end system, Empyr.

Yelp Cash Back Program Basic Signup Details

Looks simple, right? Well, good news, it is! You really just need to enter you credit card information after logging in here. According to this Reddit thread you will get paid out on the 18th of the following month.

There are always more details but the terms and conditions are straightforward and you can set it and forget it. Or, if you’d like, you can easily look on Yelp and select a filter to see local restaurants.

Easily filter for restaurants offering cash back

Yelp Cash Back Program Details

Alright, for the advanced users who want to geek out a little, this is the section for you. As I briefly mentioned above, Yelp runs off the Empyr platform which also powers Mogl. Mogl works the same as Yelp but the list of restaurants can differ. Since both Yelp and Mogl runs on the same network this means you cannot double dip and get cash back through both programs. Yelp has significantly more restaurants in my area which is why I personally focus more on Yelp.

However, you can double dip using the Dining Rewards Network which I am signed up for and am a “VIP” member so I earn 5x American miles on dining. What is really awesome is that there is TONS of overlap between the Yelp list and Dining Rewards Network in my area. And surprisingly some restaurants that I really enjoy:

My favorite takeout pizza spot

My favorite build your own pizza spot

Even my favorite fancy wine and pizza spot.

I kid, I do eat food other than pizza. Sometimes. But seriously, all three of those places are on both lists and I do love pizza so, win win for everything but my waistline.

If I am able to use my Sapphire Reserve, Yelp Cash Back, and the Rewards Network earnings can be up to 22%, which is fantastic!

Bottom Line

It’s a no brainer to sign up for Yelp for ultimate convenience. Most people already use Yelp to find restaurants and it’s incredibly easy to see which restaurants offer cash back. If you don’t want to decide where to dine based on portal earnings you still may be surprised to see some money pop up every now and then on your account. If you want to explore Mogl I would suggest that as well if the restaurants in your area are more robust on their list!